The Beatles - The White Album

The White Album (Super Deluxe Anniversary Edition 6CD + 1 Blu-ray)

5.1 Surround + hi-res stereo and mono

New stereo album mix!

16-page 12" x 12" stapled book

Esher Demos include alternate takes of nearly every album song

Album 19-times platinum sales-certified by the RIAA

Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums of All Time — rated 10/500!

"If you want to quickly know if you're going to like Giles Martin's The Beatles remixes start with "Long, Long, Long." If you don't like that one, you're probably not going to like the rest, but for me, that remix in particular is far superior to the one on the two original "Top Loader" U.K. pressings I have: more transparent and more spacious, with a holographic George front, center and three-dimensional as he's not presented on the original. ... Martin left mostly intact what was familiar and comfortable to long time listeners. If anything, the vocals sound richer, more velvety and more coherently believable than on the original. ...All of this said, the reissue does not sound like the original U.K. pressing nor was it intended to. Yet it remains true to the original's intent, in part because there was less Mr. Martin could do to change it." — Michael Fremer, Analogplanet.com, Oct. 23, 2018. Read the entire reivew here.

Exactly 50 years since this Beatles' self-titled LP first appeared (it went on to become better known by its unofficial name, due to its plain white cover), the Fab Four are serving up an anniversary reissue, complete with new mixes and previously unheard demos and session recordings.

The famous album's 30 tracks are newly mixed by producer Giles Martin, son of original album producer George Martin, and mix engineer Sam Okell in stereo and 5.1 surround audio, sourced directly from the original 4-track and 8-track session tapes. This new mix is complemented by 27 early acoustic demos and 50 session takes, most of which are previously unreleased in any form.

The White Album — originally intended to be called The Beatles, but got its nickname thanks to the all white cover — has a lot of hits on it. "Back in the USSR," "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," "Helter Skelter," and "Revolution 1" are just the tip of the iceberg. Every track is someone's favorite, from "Savoy Truffle" to "Dear Prudence."

This reissue represents the first time the album has been remixed and presented with additional demos and session recordings, although several were released on the group's "Anthology" collections in the 1990s. These include the outtakes "Not Guilty" and "What the New Mary Jane?" as well as early versions of John Lennon's "Child of Nature" (later released as "Jealous Guy"), Paul McCartney's "Junk" and George Harrison's "Sour Milk Sea."

"We had left Sgt. Pepper's band to play in his sunny Elysian Fields and were now striding out in new directions without a map," says Paul McCartney in his written introduction for the new White Album release.

The multi-format box set's six CDs and Blu-ray disc are housed in a slipsleeved 164-page hardbound book, with pull-out reproductions of the original album's four glossy color portrait photographs of John, Paul, George, and Ringo, as well as the album's large fold-out poster with a photo collage on one side and lyrics on the other. The book's written pieces include new introductions by Paul McCartney and Giles Martin, and in-depth chapters covering track-by-track details and session notes reflecting The Beatles' year between the release of Sgt. Pepper and recording sessions for The White Album.

The White Album was the first Beatles album to be released on the group's own Apple Records label. Issued in both stereo and mono for the U.K. and in stereo for the U.S., the double album was an immediate bestseller, entering the British chart at number one and remaining there for eight of the 22 weeks it was listed. The White Album also debuted at number one on the U.S. chart, holding the top spot for nine weeks of its initial 65-week chart run. In the U.S., The White Album is 19-times platinum-certified by the RIAA and in 2000, it was inducted into the Recording Academy's Grammy Hall of Fame, recognizing "recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance."

Music

Sound

Ratings from Michael Fremer @ AnalogPlanet.com